PENNSYLVANIA, USA — Editor's note: The above video is from July 11.
It's official: Benny Montgomery is a member of the Colorado Rockies organization.
Montgomery, 18, signed a contract with the team on Wednesday that came with a signing bonus $5 million, according to Jim Callis of MLB.com.
He was committed to play the University of Virginia before Colorado selected him with the eighth overall pick in this month's MLB Draft.
Montgomery celebrated the signing on Twitter:
Montgomery is signing with a team that will almost certainly be undergoing a full rebuild, with shortstop Trevor Story approaching free agency this off season, and possibly being traded in the coming days.
That could make Montgomery a centerpiece of the team's plans in the future.
Typically, high school draftees take longer to reach the Major League level, so we could still be a few years away from seeing him reach the game's top levels.
This scouting report on MLB.com offers further insight on how the industry views Montgomery:
Montgomery does a lot of things really well on the baseball field. All summer long, he showed off his close to top-of-the-scale speed (some scouts have 80 run times for him) and his tremendous raw power that helped him win the Perfect Game All-American Classic Home Run Derby. The main concern with the Virginia recruit had been with his ability to get to that power, with a bit of a rigid swing and flat bat path.
Though he lacks fluidity in his swing, the 6-foot-4 right-handed hitter did a very good job of making contact against good competition on the summer showcase circuit. A premium, fast-twitch athlete, Montgomery is a plus defender with an outstanding work ethic. He reminds some of Jayson Werth from his amateur days and will go to the team that believes the bat will play at the next level.
It isn't known exactly where Montgomery will be reporting for his first action with the team, but the Rockies' Arizona League team serves as it's Rookie Ball level, where many of the teams' draftees or non-drafted free agents get their first taste of professional ball.
There's a chance that could be the first landing spot for Montgomery.